More Than Oneshot
by KuraiArcoiris
Summary: Reborn wants Tsuna to expand her family and forces her to consider a certain dangerous prefect. She doesn't want to, but Tsuna can't disagree too much with a gun pointed at her head. A b-day present for The Twelth. 18/fem27
1. An Unusual Stalker

_An Unusual Stalker_

Trembling, she opened the door to Namimori Middle's roof. There he was, sleeping soundly. He almost looked innocent and child-like, but she knew better. Using all her stealth, she made her way next to him. She sat in _sieza_ position and clutched the two _bentos_ in her lap. Trying to relax a bit, she sighed and wondered, as she often did, whether or not her tutor made her do these kind of things for her benefit or his pleasure.

* * *

><p>"<em>You want me to do what?"<em>

"_Hibari would make an excellent addition to the familigia, so it's your job to bring him in," said Reborn, an amused smirk on his lips._

"_I didn't come here to expand my familigia, Reborn!" she protested. Yamamoto and Ryohei were bad enough. She came here to get away from the mafia, from fighting and wars that hurt those to close to her. She did not want to drag more back with her. Yamamoto and Ryohei, to her shame, had already entangled themselves too far before she noticed. But Reborn was training them, in his weird indirect way, so she knew they would be fine eventually, and nothing would change their minds now anyway. However, she did not want to entangle anyone else. Even the violent prefect. "I won't make Hibari join."_

_The gun expectedly pointed to her head._

"_A donna should put her familigia before her feelings," he said. "If Hibari can protect the familigia, it is your job to secure him."_

"_And if he isn't?"_

"_Do you doubt my judgment?" asked Reborn, adding a faint quiver in to his voice. Tsuna rolled her eyes. Reborn cocked his gun and smirked. "Why don't you check out for yourself?"_

"_Do I even want to know what you mean?" she asked in a flat tone._

"_Get to know him. Spend some time together."_

"_Please tell me this isn't going to be like with Xanxus..."_

"_That's a wonderful idea, Dame Tsuna. You start tomorrow at lunch."_

"_I hate you," she said, though she didn't mean it._

* * *

><p>Thinking back on it, perhaps she did mean those words. With another sigh, she put the bottom benot next to her and opened the top bento quietly. She pulled out her chopsticks and used them to pick half-heartedly at the rice. A chirp caught her attention as a fluffy yellow bird perched on her left hand. She smiled at it and offered it some rice with her chopsticks The bird chirped again and took a few grains before fluttering off her hand in a flurry of feathers. The yellow puffball landed on the jacketed shoulder of the now awake prefect. Tsuna inwardly cursed her inattention to her surroundings. Reborn would up her torture regimen if he ever caught wind of such carelessness on her part. Somehow, she ended up locking eyes with the prefect's dangerously sharp grey eyes. For a moment, both looked at one another, but the moment broke when Hibari glared.<p>

"You're crowding."

"S-sorry," she squeaked, returning to her Dame-Tsuna persona. She bowed and scurried backwards until she bumped into the door and fell on her backside. She bit her lip as the teen still stood glaring at her. "I-is this far enough?"

He continued his glare. Looking behind her longingly at the door, Tsuna scuttled exactly opposite side of the roof from the prefect. The glare left the dangerous teen's expression, and his face became blank, though Tsuna could see the interest in his eyes even from this distance. She settled down again and checked the _bento_ still in her hands. The food had been jostled, but it was still edible thankfully.

Hibari was still looking at her as the bird remained perched comfortably on his shoulder. The bird chirped and fluttered down from the prefect's shoulder and landed on the second _bento_, still on the floor next to Hibari. Immediately, his glare returned.

"Littering is not allowed in Namimori."

"O-oh, u-um…t-that's for you, Hibari-san. I-I've never seen you e-eat lunch so I don't know if you're hungry b-but…M-my mother a-always said that everyone should eat 3 meals a day s-so…p-please eat it…"

The glare turned into a confused look for a quarter of a second before shifting back to that blank look. Actually, Tsuna wouldn't have been entirely certain she saw anything like confusion on the stoic face if not for her hyper intuition. Hibari turned away from her and leapt onto the chain link fence bordering the roof.

"Pick up your trash," he said before leaping off the fence. Tsuna sighed, sure the prefect had landed safely. Reborn made her do the most impossible, unpleasant tasks. Leaving the _bento_ where it was, she returned to her class. She dreaded the second part of her task, but she wouldn't be swayed. She was right about Hibari, she just knew it. Or perhaps she only hoped so.

* * *

><p>She had been following him since he had exited the school. She had waited by the school gate until night fall when his round outside Namimori Middle began. He had thrown the <em>bento<em> he had found still on the roof at her, and she had barely caught it. She quivered under his glare, but for some reason, he hadn't felt fear from her.

As he proceeded into the commercial area of Namimori, he noticed the strange herbivore kept a good distance away but didn't hide or look embarrassed when he looked back at her. No, the strange herbivore cowered a bit the first few times in that peculiar fearless way and continued to follow him. He took rooftops, went through dark alleys, and crossed the bridgeless part of the river. Still, she always stayed a reasonable length behind him, running parallel to the rooftops, hurrying through the dark alleys, and swimming gracelessly across the river. She did not litter, did not crowd him or others, did not disturb the peace for all her following, and generally obeyed all of Namimori's laws. Basically, she gave him no reason to bite her to death. His agreement with his father prevented him from doing any more that glaring at her. Females were important and not to be harmed unless absolutely necessary, and only a few females would ever make it necessary. This strange herbivore was obviously not going to make it necessary, and so he could not force the annoying female away. And worse, the town was as quiet as usual, so he had no release for his frustration, no noisy herbivores to discipline.

Finally, the strange herbivore left when he entered the shrine. She had looked at the shrine with huge herbivore eyes, but had not tried to enter. As soon as he entered, he slipped his shoes off and hurried to his room fighting off the herbivorous feeling of relief. Tomorrow, she had better leave him alone.


	2. A Reckless Break

_A Reckless Break_

Hibari finished filing the last paper, one dealing with the upcoming festival security. No delinquents would dare steal at this festival, not that he had seen a delinquent in almost two months. His gaze drifted out the window into the darkening night. _She_ would be there, that strange herbivore, waiting for him. For the last month and a half, she had broken into his routine. In the morning, she stood with her eyes nearly closed and her head bobbing, waiting for him t open the school gates. He would ignore her, but she followed him faithfully into the disciplinary committee room and watch him file papers. She had even asked to help once or twice, but a glare had silenced the noisy herbivore. As if he would trust anyone else with Namimori affairs. Eventually, she would fall asleep and then startle awake as the first bell rang. Quickly, she would excuse herself and hurry to class, and he would be rid of the strange herbivore until lunch. Inevitably, she would turn up on the roof, leave a wrapped _bento_ next to him, and eat quietly as far as she could from him. He would leave her as the lunch bell rang so he could herd the more rowdy herbivores inside. The herbivore would not start following him until 2 hours after school ended, after he attended meetings with the disciplinary committee, teachers, administration, or detention students and filing papers. Even now, she was waiting for him outside by the gate, and as soon as he left Namimori Middle, the chase would begin.

Each day, he made the chase harder, growing more and more amused and perplexed by how the herbivore followed him. She had no grace and would bumble her way through most of the obstacles, but the strange herbivore kept going, never falling too much behind him if much at all. When he tired of leading her around, he would enter the shrine, and the herbivore would go to her two story house five streets over. And the next day she would be once again at the gate. Only on Sunday, their day off, would the herbivore leave him completely alone. Considering that her grades had remained steadily right above average, the herbivore probably used that day to study and catch up on her school work, which gave him another reason not to bite her to death. Namimori Middle needed more diligent students.

He scowled almost unnoticeably. One should never give an enemy reason to think she is winning. His father had said that more than one battle had been lost by a show of emotion. But he still scowled as he saw her standing there.

"G-good e-evening, Hibari-san…"

He brushed past her, forcing her to hurry to catch up to him. He leapt to the roof and glanced back to watch her scurry into an alley to keep parallel with him. He took advantage of his position to scout the nearby area, and he blinked. There, 23 meters away, four males were scowling and kicking over trashcans. Hibari identified them quickly as belonging to the _yakuza_ who had dared to take more than one stands at the last festival. He had thought he had taken care of that infestation of cannibalistic herbivores completely, but apparently he hadn't. Jumping from his perch, he sped toward the four. A feral grin grew on his face. He had gone too many days without disciplining someone.

The first didn't register anything save the wall and intense pain in his chest. The second realized he was in the air with a before-pain numbness in his side and the ground rushing up to meet him. The third wouldn't know what happened until three weeks later when he woke up in the ICU. The fourth soiled his pants as Hibari stood with a full blown grin in front of the yakuza lackey. The man shook and took a step back, regretting ever entering into the yakuza, especially the one which sent him to Namimori to "check if the area was safe." He had thought the stories of a super strong bloodthirsty teen were exaggerations. But this Hibari boy existed and now stood ready to "bite him to death" as the stories said. The man closed his eyes, partly to avoid seeing the blows and partly out of a childish belief that the monster would go away if he couldn't see it.

Hibari swung his tonfa at the pathetic excuse for a male but it struck something harder than the whimpering herbivore's face. Fiery orange eyes met his as gloved hands held his tonfa in place. He narrowed his own eyes.

"…What are you doing, herbivore?"

"Stopping you."

"Get out of my way or I'll bite you to death."

"If I get out of the way, you'll end up biting these men truly to death. There's no need for that."

"I don't take orders from you, herbivore," he warned, though his whole body tensed in anticipation of a fight with this orange-eyed challenger. This was the one he had sensed, all those time the strange herbivore should have radiated fear but didn't, should have given up but continued on, should have back off but took a step closer. She wasn't a mere herbivore, but even now, he knew she wasn't a carnivore. She lacked the need for battle, the desire for domination.

A movement distracted him from his thoughts. She shook her head and firmed her stance. Without warning, he swung his second tonfa at her midsection, but she angled herself, pushed down on the first tonfa, and flipped over his head. He immediately changed the direction of his swing, and she used her free hand to strike his arm and redirect the swing a millimeter, enough for her to dodge. She landed 3 feet away.

"Is there anyone you do listen to?" she asked calmly, her stance once again firm and ready. 'instead of answering, as if he would have fallen for such an obvious distraction, he unsheathed the chains in his tonfas and spun the ends towards her. She dodged his with near effortless grace. His eyes widened a fraction, and he growled inwardly at the thought of once again showing her weak emotion. But it appeared that she had been hiding more than he had thought. With a flick of his wrists, he sent the chains twisting and turning erratically but still aimed at the target. She dodged them as he expected, but he had already charged towards her new position. Both tonfas missed as she twisted to the left and back, but the chains were already looping back. One end grazed her head, but she managed to spin out of the way. Hibari was already on her, swinging a tonfa towards her head and the second towards her hip, but she jumped over him and slipped through the encircling chains. Tightening his hold on his weapons, Hibari spun in order to keep from becoming entangled in his own chains. He quickly tried to relocate his target, but the herbi-no, she was certainly no herbivore-stood on the edge of a building out of the immediate range of his tonfas and chains.

"You're prey's gone," she said in a flat tone in a tone completely unlike a herbivore. And, yes, the three cannibalistic herbivores were gone. "You're bloodthirsty and undisciplined. You couldn't even finish what you started before looking for another fight. I can't have such a man as a guardian, or even in my _familigia_. I will not spend any more time on you. Do not execute your poor excuse for justice in front of me again."

The words stunned him long enough for her to disappear. He stood there, before adjusting the grip on his tonfas. In an instant, dust filled the alley as the walls faced imminent destruction. They were only spared as the memory of where he was permeated through Hibari's rage. He was in Namimori, _his_ Namimori. But those words echoed over and over in his mind.

"…_your poor excuse for justice…"_


	3. Facing the Unknown

_Facing the Unknown_

For the hundredth time in the last few days, Tsuna sighed. She had never meant to say all that to Hibari, but she couldn't-wouldn't-take those words back. She had already told Reborn she would find her own cloud guardian. Reborn had said nothing, merely smirk, and now that smirk was haunting her. The _arcobaleno_ was certainly up to something.

"Hey, Tsuna," called Yamamoto. She smiled at the baseball player as he moved towards her desk. "Are you still working on the kid's assignment."

"The kid's…? Oh, you mean Reborn's request," she said, nearly sighing again at the last word. Reborn would certainly find some way to make her life worse if she called it anything else. "No. Not anymore."

"So we can have lunch together again?"

"Get away from _la principessa_, baseball idiot," yelled Gokudera, imposing himself between Tsuna and Yamamoto. "You just want to eat the tenth's precious lunch."

"You missed it too then."

"I'm not you, baseball freak!" Gokudera protested, but his cheeks took on a reddish hue. Tsuna smiled sadly. Gokudera had probably had to physically restrain himself to keep away from her while she was fulfilling Reborn's "request." Her tutor probably helped, knowing him. And then used Gokudera in some sort of torturous training session with Yamamoto and Ryohei. Not that the other two didn't also miss her in their own ways. Ryohei had to be distracted after school so she could end up at the gate on time since he would not quit trying to get her to join the boxing club despite her gender. Yamamoto had helped distracted the boxer and had more than once pulled the silver-haired bomber away after their two-hour afternoon time together, but she had known that the layback teen hadn't liked her leaving either by the almost hidden worry in the swordsman's black eyes.

"Don't worry. I brought enough to share," she said, ignoring the shadow nearby. She didn't want to know his precise location. She had already been using a subtle sky flame to strengthen Yamamoto's rain flame and keeping her two closest guardians from noticing him. Otherwise, he would have been detected long ago. Stealth wasn't his strong suit, but in his defense, he hadn't had to use such methods often. He was too straightforward a person for covertness. She frowned. Not that she should spend too much time defending a hypocrite.

"Hm. You okay, Tsuna? "

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine."

"What about your cheek then?" Yamamoto asked in a voice Tsuna knew only sounded upbeat. She unconsciously reached up to touch the bandage on her cheek. No one had wounded her in single combat for quite a while, so she had forgotten about it.

"Oh, um…well, I was cooking and…well…I made _tamagoyaki_."

Yamamoto gave a rare eager smile while Gokudera looked torn between anticipation and guilt at his supposed greed. She would never understand what about such a simple cheap egg dish make them so happy. She thought about Lambo, I-pin, and Fuuta. She had actually gotten home early enough to cook for them. All three had been hyper, following her around the whole kitchen and babbling a mile a minute and barely letting her work. She smiled at the memory. She hadn't had too much time with them, so she had shared their enthusiasm. She shook her head, determined to forget the shadow and just enjoy her day. Unfortunately, the shadow persisted. It followed her as she ate with her three guardians out in the field, when she was trying not to fall asleep in class, and when she parted ways with her friends. Frustrated, she stopped and finally pinpointed the shadow.

"I think I already know the answer, but I'm going to ask anyway. What do you want, Hibari?"

The prefect jumped out of the tree had been watching her from, and if the moment had been at any other time or contained any other person, Tsuna would have laughed. Hibari had leaves and branches tangled in his hair and his uniform somehow looked neat and mussed at the same time, as if it wanted to be impeccable but fell short. Apparently, he had no real clue how to spy on someone. His face, however, forbid any mention of his state. She couldn't help but crack a small smile though.

"Fight me," he said, almost too flatly, mechanically. Tsuna blinked. His eyes looked bloodshot, and he had dark bags under his eyes. She blinked back her shock. How had he gotten to this state in one day? If he was Mukuro, she would have half expected this to be an attempt at manipulating her into a fight. But she knew better. Hibari was nothing if not blunt and straightforward.

"No. I don't fight someone without a reason," said Tsuna, trying to match his bluntness. She sharpened her eyes. "And it wouldn't be wise to give me one."

In an instant, Hibari pulled his tonfas out of his jacket and rushed towards her, but she merely dodged him. Immediately, she noticed his movements were far sloppier than yesterday. They weren't at all calculated, she noticed as she ducked under yet another tonfa strike, and he hadn't pulled out the chains. Using all the experience she had piled up since her fight with Xanxus, she started dodging the wild strikes automatically and set most of her mind to analyzing her opponent. Besides his sloppy style (though to be honest, even in this state, Hibari could probably still knock down a whole Vongola squadron before being scratched) and semi-mussed uniform, she noticed that the tonfas bore several new nicks. When she had fought him yesterday, she had taken note that Hibari took excellent care of his weapons; both the chains and tonfas themselves bearing a polished gleam. Today the tonfas looked old and worn. And his hands didn't look much better. But the worst part was his eyes. The usually sharp, cold eyes lacked their ferocity and looked glassy and flat. And they weren't looking at her. Not once in their first fight had Hibari ever taken his eyes off her until she had forcibly distracted him, so intense was his desire to defeat her. Now, he wasn't fighting her, not really. So then what was he fighting?

Her feet slid to a stop as the answer made itself clear to her. She grabbed the tonfa swinging broadly at her, stepped into the strike, shouldered Hibari's weight, and flipped him over. To her surprised horror, he hit the floor fully, his glassy eyes widening in something too close to shock. Before she could completely process what she was doing, she grabbed his tonfas from the prefect's momentarily loose grip and stepped back. He immediately sprung up again, a new fire lightening his eyes, but the desperation, for now she knew what had made those eyes so flat, still remained. He swung at her barehanded, but she sidestepped him and ran. He chased her, but she wasn't going to make following her easy. He certainly hadn't.

"Give those back," commanded Hibari in a cold growl as Tsuna reached up and flipped onto a fire escape of a nearby building.

"Give me your word you won't swing them at me anymore."

Hibari growled wordlessly, and Tsuna ran on to the roof knowing all too well that he was right behind her. And so the next hour passed. She ran across roofs, through crowded streets, in underground sewers, back and forth across the river several times, and finally into a dead end. If Reborn was watching, and she was almost certain he was, she knew her torture regimen would increase by at least an hour. Tsuna groaned at the thought of a 2 am wake-up call as she once again dodged the mindless beast that was Hibari. She had hoped he would have reached a negotiable point before this. She had hoped that holding his tonfas hostage would at least allow for some conversation, but she had miscalculated somewhere. He had only gotten more and more determined (mindlessly angry really), and now she had no idea what she was going to do. He kept charging at her. Suddenly, he was right in front of her. In a split second, she had a tonfa in her hand and was spinning away from the prefect and behind him. The tonfa met the back of the prefect's head full force.

Tsuna stared between the unmoving Hibari slumped on the alley floor and the tonfa still in her hand, and she sighed.


	4. Tangled Up

_Tangled Up_

When he awoke, Hibari immediately reached for his tonfas, hoping yesterday night had been some sort of dream and promising himself to bite the not-herbivore to death for causing it. Unfortunately, his hand didn't leave his side.

"Oh, I see you're up," said a cheerful voice, something he had not yet heard from the not-herbivore. His gazed turned darker than black as he glared at her. "Um, sorry about the duct tape, but you really didn't give me a choice This is the only way to have a conversation without you attacking me."

"Release me," he growled. The not-herbivore shook her head and put something beside him.

"Here," she said. Her large brown eyes took in his glare. He checked his restraints, but they were unyielding. She gave him a slight bow even though she made sure to keep a safe distance. "I apologize. I should never have taken these."

At those words, he narrowed his attention to the items she had placed next to him. Hibari mentally scoffed at her idiocy at returning his weapons to him and buried the relief and surprise at seeing his tonfas back and carefully polished. He made continued subtle attempts at finding the weakness in his bindings.

"I'll be right back," the not-completely-a-herbivore said, leaving the room. He immediately started to struggle with all his strength against the bindings, twisting and turning in ways that would have those mindless herbivores in his Namimori Middle gaping like stupid sheep. Not that he cared what those herbivores thought.

"You won't get out, you know," she said, and Hibari admired her stealth for an instant before noticing she was making no move to stop him and so he continued to wrestle against the bindings. She winced as he twisted his arm in an unnatural fashion. "I've been learning how to restrain men twice your size since I was seven, and I have a ruthless teacher."

Filing the strange info mentally, he continued to try the restraints and ignore the pain that snuck up various places in his arms and legs. The not-herbivore merely sat down to watch and set a box she had brought with her on the floor. He was too overly familiar with the shape to not know that it was undoubtedly one of her _bentos_. A sudden cry interrupted his conversation as a small child ran into the room and straight to the herbivore.

"Come back, I-Pin!" came another voice, and a fuzzy black blob ran in after the small child.

"What did you do, Lambo?" asked the not-herbivore, making space on her lap for the small child while glaring at the black blob.

"Lambo didn't do anything!" yelled the black blob which was apparently another child. The first child chattered something in Chine…his eyes widened.

"…_and he pushed me!"_ said the first child in high-pitched Chinese.

"Lambo, why did you push I-pin?" asked Tsuna.

"I-Pin took my candy!"

"That is no reason to hit someone," said Tsuna harshly, making the black blob child take a step back. "And that candy was I-Pin's, not yours. How many times have told you not to take other peoples food?"

"B-but Lambo-sama…I….I-pin's lying!" the child yelled, making entirely too much noise.

"Quiet or I'll bite you to death," Hibari warned. The child's noise was interrupting his concentration and attempts to escape.

"Huh? Who are you? Do you want to be the great Lambo-sama's subordinate?" asked the child, even more noisily. Hibari glared, and the child quivered and shook. Giving another cry, the black blob quickly hid behind the not-herbivore. She matched his glare with one of her own.

"Don't distract him," she said in the same tone she had used on the child. "It's hard enough to get Lambo to listen without distractions. And there will be not biting to death in my house."

"I will do what I want," Hibari said, his eyes narrowing. He was not a child.

"And that's the problem," she said, rolling her eyes. She turned back to the black blob child. "With both of you. We'll finish this outside."

She stood up and placed the box next to his tonfas and spread it. Several plain rice balls inside it. In a few quick movements, she had untwisted Hibari's limbs and had him, still bound, in a seated position with his hands in front of him.

"Please eat these," she said. "I don't want you to starve. I'll be right back."

He stared at the _bento_ and his hands for an instant, before shifting his gaze as indifferently as possible to a corner of the fairly empty room. If he hadn't fought her, he would have thought her a complete herbivore. She had bound him, yes, but she had returned his weapons and was offering him nourishment. When she left the room, he scoffed quietly, rolled over to his tonfas, and set to work on releasing himself. He would test and see exactly what this not-herbivore was.

* * *

><p>The duct tape lay in clumps, and Hibari sat unbound in front of an empty <em>bento<em>. Tsuna blinked. No, the steel-eyed teen still sat there, and the _bento_ was still empty. She wasn't sure which fact was stranger.

"Your bindings didn't work," said the prefect, surprising her further.

"I knew you would get out of them," she explained. "I left your tonfas next to you so that you could get out. You're not my enemy."

"I am your opponent."

"I don't want to fight you, I already said that," she said with a sigh. She sat carefully in front of him, watching for any sudden movements.

"You sound like a herbivore."

"Most herbivores don't talk. And technically, I'm an omnivore."

Silence filled the air, and Tsuna had to use all her training not to fidget. Hibari's gaze wasn't intense, but it was fairly unreadable. Even Reborn's eyes never looked that blank. She almost wished she had brought up tea, if only to have something to do besides stare at each other.

"Why are you still here?" asked Tsuna, hoping to draw some reaction for the prefect.

"I can hold a conversation without being bound," he said, a hardness overcoming his features. "And I am not a child."

Tsuna bit her lip to keep from laughing or making some sarcastic Reborn-like retort. This is not what she would call a conversation, and he looked more like a child now that she could perceive that the prefect was sulking. Well, she should probably use this opportunity to find out why he had gone so berserk.

"Why are those tonfas so important to you?"

"That's none of your concern."

"Hibari-san, a conversation goes both ways, and really that's all I wanted to know. I didn't mean to anger you when I took them. I just wanted to disarm you."

Hibari glared at her, but she ignored the glare and put on her patient face. Either he would tell her or he wouldn't, but she was not going to change the topic. He would have to do that. His gaze drifted back to the corner he had inspected earlier.

"My father gave them to me," he said flatly.

"Oh," she said, hearing everything the prefect didn't say. "He had good taste in weapons. I've seen many, many weapon thanks to my demon tutor, so I can tell those are well made, much better than the tonfas I see at home."

"You are from Italy."

"I am from Japan originally," she corrected. She didn't want to tell him the next part, but it was only fair. "I moved to Italy after my parents died in a…in an accident."

No matter how many times she said it, Tsuna hated that word. No accident had claimed her parent's lives. They had died at the hands of the mafia's second best hitman. If Reborn hadn't come along when he did, she would have also died.

"You're no herbivore."

The words broke through what Reborn affectionately (or as close as it got with him) her it-wasn't-an-accident fog. Hibari had strange look on his face, or maybe she had spent too much time with the prefect. His blank face had a slight look of confusion and maybe, just maybe, concern.

"I already told you I am not an herbivore," said Tsuna. "I am Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"Sawada Tsunayoshi," he said with a nod. He stood and whipped out his tonfas. "Sawada Tsunayoshi, fight me."

"The answers is still no," she said with a hint of exasperation. Why did all the males she knew have such thick heads? As suddenly as they appeared, the tonfas disappeared. Hibari headed towards the door but looked at her once more before exiting.

"I will be watching you closely, Sawada Tsunayoshi. If you disturb Namimori, I will bite you to death."

And so he left. Tsuna stared at the door before shaking her head and sighing. Hibari Kyoya was turning out to be more difficult to figure out than Reborn.


	5. Skies Cannot Remain Cloudless

_Skies Cannot Remain Cloudless_

Humming, Tsuna put the finishing touches on the last of the four _bentos_. She smiled, pleased with her work. She had never thought that she would be making so many. Reborn always ate from her _bento_, with or without her permission, and the kids insisted on making their own. Her mood fell a bit as she thought of how two five year olds thought that they had to pull their own weight whenever possible. Shaking her head to clear it of such thoughts, she carefully set the four _bentos_ in a bag just in time to hear the expected knock on the door. Taking a moment to double check who was at the door with her hidden camera, she smiled and headed towards the door.

"Good morning, Yamamoto, Gokudera."

"Good morning, _principessa_," said Gokudera, grinning widely. Tsuna's own smile grew wider in response. Gokudera's smile was rare, and she was grateful she could see it every morning.

"Morning, Tsuna," said Yamamoto. The brunette baseball player had his usual grin on. Actually, he was a swordsman now if Reborn was to be believed.

"Ciaossu," called the devil she had thought of from right next to her. He cut off the two before they could greet him. "A strange _familigia_ has been hanging around, so expect to be ambushed on the way to school."

"Ambushed? You mean as part of that mafia game?" asked Yamamoto, his eyes cocking slightly in confusion.

"It's not a game, baseball idiot!" yelled Gokudera. "And no one's ambushing the _principessa_! I'll blow them away before they even lay eyes on her!"

"Not if I stop them first," said Yamamoto, his black eyes sharpening. "Then I'll get the extra points for protecting Tsuna."

"I'm not losing to an idiot who thinks the mafia is a game," said Gokudera. He quickly bowed towards Tsuna and then rushed past the mailbox. "Don't worry, _principessa_! I'll take care of everything!"

"I'll finish them off before Gokudera gets too excited ends up in the hospital again, alright Tsuna," said Yamamoto as he waved and went off after Gokudera. Tsuna nodded and sighed.

"Couldn't you have just told them you wanted to talk to me alone?" asked Tsuna, adjusting to the sudden weight on her head. Inwardly, she groaned. The day had started out so well.

"They should have realized I lied to them," said Reborn from his perch on Tsuna's head.

"Professional profilers and psychiatrists can't tell when you're lying," said Tsuna, heading towards school at a much slower pace than her friends. "And you are their source of information concerning the mafia."

"I shouldn't be," said Reborn, and for an instant Tsuna could almost see the reasoning behind Reborn's actions. If Gokudera and Yamamoto didn't know that no strange familigia's were in the vicinity then how would they when there were such people— An explosion caused Tsuna to fall into a defensive stance even as her mind recognized the source as one of Gokudera's bombs. "Hm, seems like he will cause a lot of destruction this time. Good thing I already called Giannini."

"Giannini!" she cried in exasperation. "This is about the last time he updated your weapons isn't it!"

"A hitman's weapons should always be in top conditions."

"He's still learning! And how many times do I have to say he's a mechanic, not a maintenance man. Don't call him for reconstruction jobs!"

"You made four _bentos_ today."

"Yes, so?" she asked cautiously, still off balance from the sudden change of topic.

"You've been making four _bentos_ for several weeks now."

"Yes." One word answers until she knew where the little devil was going with this conversation.

"Since Hibari started napping in the tree where your _familigia_ eats lunch."

"Ryohei, Yamamoto, Gokudera, and me eat as friends, not _familigia_. " She didn't like where this was going.

"You give one bento to Ryohei, split one between Gokudera and Yamamoto, and eat one yourself."

"More like share it with you," she mumbled. She _really_ didn't like where she thought this conversation was going.

"And the last one you leave beside the tree where you get it empty at the end of the day."

"Yes," she said returning to one word answers. She would need all her abilities to stop Reborn from what he was trying to do. She wouldn't let him drag Hibari into the mafia. Not like Hibari would join anyway. He was less like a cloud and more like a bird, a dangerous, solitary hawk. He did not belong in her _familigia_.

"When are you going to ask him out?"

"Reborn, I already told you Hibari can't be my cloud guardian and—wait. What!"

"I want you to know, I approve. He comes from a strong line of fighters and will add good blood to the _familigia_," said Reborn hopping off her head. Only then did Tsuna realize she had stopped out of pure shock.

"W-what!"

"Now listen to me, young lady," said Reborn, somehow suddenly wearing a middle-aged woman's dress and apron. Tsuna had always tried to figure out how he did these quick changes with little success, but this time her mind was spinning too hard for her to even try. "A man like Hibari isn't going to be caught through his stomach alone. You need a more aggressive approach. That boy isn't looking for a relationship. I would be surprised if romance has even crossed that boy's mind, so you're going to have to put the thought in there yourself. Do you understand what I mean?"

"W-wha—Y-you mean, R-Reborn, that's—" Tsuna fumbled through her words. It had been a long time since she had felt her words trip over each other so much. But really, where did her evil, manipulative tutor pull _that_ out of? Some stupid drama where the mother taught the daughter how to catch a man? And wouldn't that daughter be the antagonist rather than the protagonist? And why was she thinking about that now? She really hated her tutor sometimes. Even now, when she knew his words were probably a tactic to catch her off balance, she couldn't help making an utter fool out of herself. And she hadn't even thought of Hibari in that way. Hibari did have looks that could inspire a fan club that would rival both Gokudera's and Yamamoto's, but with one glance, he could terrify even the most ardent admirer. The teen basically voided all thoughts with his cold manner and blood thirst. Tsuna couldn't have even thought of him that way, except now that Reborn being Reborn had brought it up. If she denied the idea, Reborn would simply say she's in denial, and she couldn't very well say she was interested in Hibari. She barely liked him as a person, and she didn't trust him. The problem was that love could start from anything. So she had better stick with what she knew Reborn was really after. "Hibari will not be my cloud guardian."

"I understand," said Reborn bobbing his head under a new black wig styled in a bun. "Relationships would get complicated if he worked under you."

"He is not going to become my cloud guardian, so you can stop whatever you are scheming."

"But all I want is for you to try to get a good man," said Reborn, his voice becoming shrill. "I don't want you to be lonely."

Refusing to say or hear another word, Tsuna turned and kept walking towards school. If she was late, Hibari would certainly push a challenge on her, and she didn't want to be on the business end of his tonfas again. She had a feeling that if she beat him again, he would never give her any rest.

The familiar weight rested upon her head again, and Tsuna didn't even try to toss it off. She knew better than to try such a thing on the world's best hitman, but she did ignore him. The whole charade had been totally unnecessary. She wouldn't bend on this one. Hibari was not going to be her cloud guardian. He wouldn't be part of the mafia at all, not while she had a say in the matter. Her were so distracted that she barely noticed someone coming towards her until he was on the rooftop next to her. Upon realizing who it was, she reluctantly looked up.

"Good morning, Hibari," she said with a small smile, trying to hide her unease and embarrassment with her former thoughts quickly.

"Vandalism is not tolerated in Namimori," he said tossing something in her direction. Tsuna immediately stretched her arms and caught an unconscious Gokudera before he hit the ground. She checked the bomber over, but besides a bump that was obviously the cause of the bomber's unconsciousness, there were no real injuries.

"I'm sorry, Hibari. We already have someone coming over to fix the damages," she said as formally as possible. She couldn't fault the prefect for defending his city, especially in such a bloodless way. "Did you see Yamamoto anywhere near Gokudera?"

"You should keep better track of your herbivores."

"Um, I'll try?"

Hibari nodded and turned to go.

"Wait!" The cry escaped Tsuna as a crazy thought entered her head. She almost twitched as Hibari glanced over his shoulder. Her reasonable side had hoped he wouldn't look back. Unfortunately, if she didn't take care of this thought now, it would fester in the back of her mind and refuse to leave her alone. "U-um…you…y-you wouldn't go on a date with me? Y-you couldn't think of me in any romantic way, I mean?"

Tsuna did fidget under the steel gray stare as Hibari seemed to want to drill into her now with just his gaze. Great, apparently she had infected him with the thought too. She hadn't thought that Hibari would be affected by such things, but he wasn't made of stone so—

"Do not ask me herbivorous questions."

Tsuna blinked as Hibari disappeared in the direction of the school. What in the world was a herbivorous question? And how was she supposed to know what one was? Shaking her head, this time more to make her passenger uncomfortable than to clear her thoughts, she headed quickly towards the school with Gokudera as comfortable as possible over her shoulder. After asking such a "herbivorous question," she did not fancy being late. At least her own thoughts had stilled at the strange answer. After all, that statement could only mean no. Couldn't it?


	6. Cloud at Sunrise

_A Cloud at Sunrise_

He slowly chewed the rice from the purple _bento_. The food was good as usual, but... He set the bento down and glared at it.

"Kyoya-san, is something wrong?" asked Kusukabe from his side of the prefect's office. Kyoya turned the glare on his subordinate before tossing the bento at the older teen.

"Eat it," commanded Kyoya. Kusakabe stared strangely at the bento before looking at Kyoya once again.

"Sawada-san makes good food," said Kusakabe tentatively. He had no idea how to handle this topic, especially since he wasn't exactly sure what the topic was. The older teen shifted under the intensifying glare and rolled a toothpick around his mouth a few times as he tried to come up with something to say. Finally, he used the only words he could come up with. "Is there something wrong with your stomach?"

Kyoya's glare shifted from intense to scrutinizing. Kusakabe made no movement, staying as still as possible and showing no fear. Not that he feared the prefect, not in the normal sense. Somewhere along the line, Kusakabe had begun to think of the strange boy as an awkward little brother. Looking away from Kusakabe, Kyoya rested one hand on his stomach.

"It's none of your business."

"I will not eat it if you do not tell me," said Kusakabe, holding the bento more carelessly than before. The glare returned, and tonfas appeared.

"Eat it or I will bite you to death."

"Then bite me," said Kusakabe, shifting in such a way as to avoid any truly dangerous injuries. Kyoya's glare lessened to make room for confusion in the grey eyes. Finally, Kyoya huffed and put the tonfas down.

"…it feels hot."

Kusakabe restrained the urge to blink. Kyoya's stomach felt hot?

"I see…Anything else?"

The glare remained, but by this point, Kusakabe knew it was mostly for show. Kyoya did not show weakness.

"There's movement."

"What kind of movement?"

"…movement."

Apparently, Kyoya had no words to describe the movement. Kusakabe looked closer at the prefect, hoping something would just click. It did. Kyoya's face was not as pale as usual. A light redness shaded his cheeks. This time, Kusakabe could not stop his urge. He blinked. He blinked again. He looked from the bento to the prefect now scowling near the window. There was only one conclusion to come to, but Kusakabe's brain refused to reach it. Finally, Kusakabe took a deep breath, hoping to keep from chuckling at the simple and somehow ridiculous answer.

"Kyoya," Kusakabe said slowly, not knowing how better to say the next words, "does your stomach move and grow hot when you see or think of Sawada-san?"

A blank look overcame Kyoya's face, confirming Kusakabe's words. Kusakabe could not stop the smile that tugged the corners of his mouth. He had never thought he'd see the day when Hibari Kyoya, head prefect of Namimori Middle and most feared teenager in all Namimori, had a _crush_. And on Sawada-san of all people. Kusakabe would have hardly chosen that mousy girl as the object of Kyoya. She embodied the word "herbivore," or at least Kyoya's definition.

"…I see. If your…stomach is…upset, I will finish Sawada-san's food."

Kyoya nodded, the light redness returning. Kusakabe hid his growing smile behind a bite of rice. Steadily, Kusakabe made his way through what was left of the bento, Kyoya's eyes on him the whole time. When he finished, the older teen crossed the room and put the empty box on Kyoya's desk. The grey eyes were still on him.

"Do you need anything else, Kyoya-san?" asked Kusakabe. The grey eyes drifted to the left in a show of indifference. Kusakabe knew that whatever Kyoya was about to say would be immensely important.

"Tell me about dates."

With a smile, Kusakabe started to explain the dating process to the quiet teen who continued to keep his gaze off Kusakabe as if uninterested. The older teen fought to keep the grin off his face. If he had not seen the faint redness, the request would have spurned an explanation of different kinds of fruit and where Kyoya could have found them. After all, it was not the first time the loner had asked Kusakabe for odd information. Kyoya had a strange and random sense of curiosity. But this time, Kusakabe knew that the information was for a purpose. And as any good old brother, he would help his little brother win the heart of the girl he loved.

-break-

"Sawada Tsunayoshi."

The two words caused every eye in 1-A to look at the door way in surprise and fear. Hibari stood there not looking into the classroom, his grey eyes fixed on the teacher who quaked under the gaze. Tsuna sighed. Apparently, he had decided that she would have to accept his challenge if he asked it in front of her classmates. She would only be slightly sorry to disappoint him.

"Hibari Kyoya," she said copying him. The tone and the fact that she did not stand up from her desk caused whispers and prayers to erupt around the classroom. Hibari did not turn his gaze towards her, almost making the teacher lose his dignity in the process. Tsune noticed that Gokudera and Yamamoto were both shifting forward and preparing to attack should the prefect make the slightest movement. She gave both boys a look, conveying the message to leave the dangerous teen to her. The two shifted backwards a bit, Gokudera with a scowl and Yamamoto with a wry grin. She turned her attention back to the prefect. Time passed, and the teacher's nerves grew worse while the students grew bolder and bolder in their whispers. Finally, Tsuna took pity on the teacher who looked about ready to break down. "What do you need, Hibari?"

"Meet me outside," he said, still not looking at her.

"I told you I will not fight you without a reason," she said, her frustration slightly coloring her words. Why did he have to be so persistent?

"I do not wish to fight you today, Sawada Tsunayoshi," he said, surprising her with his words and also finally turning to face her. She could tell he was sincere, but there was something else too. However, he turned away before she could get a good read on it. The teacher nearly lost control over himself as the intense gaze returned to him.

"Alright," she said, standing up from her desk and making her way to the door. She noted that the whispers and prayers had intensified. She turned to the poor teacher. "If you will excuse me, Gatou-sensei."

"O-of c-course," the man managed to say. He had already grabbed on to the desk and was using it to keep himself upright as his shaking knees were not doing their job. Tsuna gave him a calming smile and hurried out of the classroom for the poor man's sake. She continued at a brisk pace until she was outside on the other side of the building. Last thing she needed was curious classmates looking out the windows at her and Hibari, especially two classmates in particular.

"So what do you need, Hibari?" she asked, the question more curious than hostile this time. The prefect stood a little ways away from her, still not looking at her.

"…meet me," same the surprisingly quiet answer.

"What?"

"Meet me here at sunset," he said. His grey eyes once again turned to her, but they were sharp and challenging. If he hadn't said he didn't want to fight her, she would have thought the meeting was for another challenge. But why else would he want to meet with her?

"What for?"

She wondered why exactly his gaze was once again turned away from her. Surely whatever he needed to ask her would go over better if he just asked her now instead of set up a later time to…Tsuna had a very bad feeling.

"Hibari, have you talked to Reborn?" she asked making jerky hand motions. "He's about this tall and he looks like a baby and he's really strong and can manipulate almost everyone into doing anything and, and, and you're not asking me on a date, right?"

Hibari was looking at her. The gaze would have been blank to most people, but Tsuna could see the underlining confusion. Taking a deep breath, she decided to try again and pray that she was wrong.

"Hibari, are you…asking me out on a date?"

The blank gaze shifted a bit, and her cheeks burned. She suddenly found the gate across from them very interesting.

"D-did R-Reborn talk t-to you?"

The silence strangely confirmed that Hibari had yet to meet Reborn. Tsuna's blush intensified. She wondered if she Suddenly, she came back to her senses. Even if Hibari was asking her out on his own terms, she couldn't possibly say yes. She had already determined not to drag him into her mafia world.

"Thank you, Hibari-san, but I can't."

The words came out harder than she thought, and she spun away from him and nearly ran back into the building. Her heart beat faster and faster even as she slowed down and entered one of the girl's bathrooms. She leaned against the closed door, glad the bathroom was empty. Her face burned, and her heart hurt. And not for the first time, she wished she had nothing to do with the mafia.


	7. Answering No

_Answering No_

"She said no."

The words were spoken with no emotion. Kusukabe made no move to comfort the proud prefect, though the older teen could hear the silent pain in those words. Even if he didn't want to, Kusakabe knew that he would have to probe the wound in order to heal it.

"How did she say no?"

The question earned him a glare, but the confusion mixed in lowered its effectiveness. Kusakabe would not have been deterred by it anyway. He would help Kyoya, even if it might cost a hospital trip or two, so Kusakabe returned the glare with a demanding determined gaze. A full five minutes passed before Kyoya broke eye contact.

"She apologized and said she couldn't."

"I see," said the older teen, taking in what the words implied. Apparently, the Sawada girl wasn't what she appeared. The Dame-Tsuna that everyone gossiped about would have been too terrified to refuse the intimidating prefect. And she had done so, politely. "Did she tell you why she couldn't?"

"No."

"Did you ask?"

The silence that answered him told Kusakabe that no, Kyoya hadn't. Kusakabe allowed a small smile to curve his lips and most definitely not become a knowing smirk.

"Ask her. If you know why she refused you, you might be able to convince her that you can take care of it."

Kyoya grunted, telling Kusakabe that his advice had been heeded. Kusakabe turned to leave the office before the implications of his words hit him. If the reason that Sawada-san had refused was her feelings for another boy, then Kyoya would indeed take care of the problem. With sudden speed, Kusakabe turned to add that no one should be bitten to death if Kyoya wished to impress the girl. Unfortunately, the violent prefect was already gone.

* * *

><p>She peeked around the corner, ignoring the two growingly tense teenagers beside her. The prefect was glaring at the groups of students passing through the gate and probably waiting for her. But Tsuna couldn't face him, not yet. She knew what he would ask (demand really), and she didn't know how she would answer him yet. If she were being honest with her honest, she would probably not know what to say tomorrow either, but she still hadn't grown out of her avoidance tactic. Not that Reborn hadn't tried to beat it out of her. Signaling the two boys next to her, she slunk back to the sports field. Yamamoto grinned and walked casually behind her. Gokudera threw an angry glance at the prefect but quickly turned to follow her in practiced silence. Unfortunately, the glance had been noticed by one of Gokudera's many fangirls, who was friend with a Yamamoto fangirl, which alerted all the female population in area of the front gate to the three's attempt at stealth. Of course, the commotion they made caught the attention of the one person the three were trying to avoid. After sending a glare that silenced all the squealing and jealous mutterings that had flooded the courtyard, Hibari made his way towards the three. With a quick leap and a dash, he stood in front of the three. Tsuna took half a step back, alerting the other two.<p>

"What do you want with the tenth?" growled Gokudera.

"You're crowding," Hibari said sharply. His hands fell dangerously to his sides.

"Maa, Hibari, we were just trying to get away from the crowd," said Yamamoto, grinning. He took a step in front of Tsuna. "Do you need something?"

"Don't talk so friendly with an enemy of the tenth!"

"But, Gokudera, he eats lunch with us. I don't think Tsuna or the little guy would let him do that if he were an enemy."

"Shut up, baseball freak! Don't talk like you know what you're taking about!"

"You're being noisy. I will have to bite you to death," said Hibari, his tonfas ready in his hand. Tsuna took a deep breath and stepped forward.

"Enough, Hibari," she said as calmly as possible. "They just want to protect me."

"A carnivore doesn't need protection."

"I thought you said I wasn't a carnivore."

Hibari looked at her, and she tried to stand her ground without losing control of her instinctual shakes. She had learned to bury her natural shy nervousness and fear under Reborn's strict tutelage, but now she could barely keep herself still. She wondered what Hibari saw when he looked at her. The thought made the shakes harder to control.

"You w-wanted to ask me something, Hibari?" she asked. She hoped against hope that her tutor was nowhere near here. If he had heard Tsuna stutter, he would increase her training ten times. Forget wishing, she was doomed.

"Why?"

The one word question was enough to nearly make her lose her composure, but then her training would have increased 50 times. She didn't want to answer it, but she knew she would have no peace until she had answered it. Unfortunately, her avoidance tactic kicked in.

"I have my reasons."

"State them or be bitten to death."

"Don't you dare threaten the tenth!" yelled Gokudera. He moved to step in front of Tsuna, but she stopped with a glance. Yamamoto walked around and put his hand on his fellow guardian's shoulder.

"Wait, Gokudera," said Yamamoto, "calm down. It's not like he could bite Tsuna to death anyway."

"Then I'll bite you to death, noisy herbivore," said Hibari, his tonfas flashing dangerously. Tsuna sighed and turned around.

"I'm sorry, but could you guys go home without me? I have to talk to Hibari."

"We're not leaving you alone with him," said Gokudera, hands itching towards his pockets. This time he ignored Tsuna's look.

"Gokudera's right. According to the rules of the game, we can't leave you alone," said Yamamoto, swinging his arm around Tsuna's shoulders. In a flash, a tonfa grazed Yamamoto's hair. The weapon would have met with the baseball player's head, but Tsuna had pushed Yamamoto down. The two had landed in a tangle of limbs, and Tsuna had barely time to register their situation before having to roll both herself and Yamamoto away from another blow. Yamamoto finally recovered from his shock sufficient enough to grab her and stand them upright in time to dodge Hibari's tonfa again. Tsuna spun them to avoid the second tonfa, and twirled Yamamoto away from the first as she ducked. She had a second to notice that their efforts to avoid Hibari bore a strange resemblance to dancing, and then she focused on dodging several tonfa strikes with quick footwork while guiding Yamamoto safely through the barrage. The fact that the baseball player was able to follow her lead showed his growing skill and innate talent, and her inner Reborn was more than pleased that Yamamoto was part of the familigia. But then again, if it weren't for Tsuna, the newbie swordsman would have stood no chance against Hibari.

"Enough," said Tsuna placing herself in between the violent prefect and her guardian. She took a breath that fell short of a gasp as a tonfa stopped a centimeter away from her face. "Why are you attacking us? We didn't break any of Namimori Middle rules!"

"He was crowding," said Hibari.

"Hahaha," Yamamoto chuckled, redirecting Hibari's attention to the baseball player. Tsuna took the moment to locate Gokudera, who was unconscious behind the prefect. That would explain why for about half a minute her and Yamamoto only had to deal with one tonfa. The second was being used to dispatch her storm guardian and right hand man. The future of the tenth generation of the Vongola wasn't looking too bright if a civilian could take out their strongest guardian. No wonder Reborn wanted Hibari in the familgia. Quickly dispelling such traitorous thoughts, Tsuna shifted her focus back on Hibari who looked ready to pounce on Yamamoto for his laughter. "Hibari's just like Gokudera."

"Gokudera?" Tsuna asked. The phrase had gotten Hibari's attention too, if the lessening of his bloodlust was any sign.

"Yeah, Gokudera doesn't like it when I put my arm around Tsuna either."

Did Yamamoto mean what Tsuna thought he meant? She barely snapped out of her shock in time to grab Hibari's leg and adjust his trajectory enough to make him miss his target. She used Hibari's own momentum to throw him over her head and away from Yamamoto.

"Yamamoto, take Gokudera and leave now," she said in her firmest boss tone.

"Okay," said Yamamoto cheerfully, as he moved over to where Gokudera was. Tsuna struggled to stay between Hibari and Yamamoto at all times, but she could tell that he also wasn't giving it his best. After Yamamoto had picked up Gokudera and slung the unconscious guardian over his shoulder, he waved. "See you tomorrow, Tsuna. Have fun!"

Tsuna smiled. Only Yamamoto could call having a private conversation with the violent prefect fun. Hibari's attacks suddenly gained intensity, and Tsuna couldn't even spare a moment to wave back. Dodging and blocking Hibari's suddenly intensely ferocious attacks, Tsuna barely had time to breathe let alone pay attention to anything, but she finally got an instant between attacks to realize that the area was completely clear. She immediately blocked the next blow and held the tonfa in her hand while she caught the second one.

"Hibari, don't you want to know the answer to your question?" she asked, straining to keep the tonfas from moving again and not yank them out of Hibari's hand.

"No," he said, pulling the tonfas back. Tsuna refused to let them go, so she held on and nearly fell into Hibari. She felt something on her forehead. Hibari backed away, putting his tonfas back to wherever he kept them. Tsuna's mind was nowhere near trying to figure out that mystery; it was occupied elsewhere. "Sawada Tsunayoshi, you are mine whether you want to be or not."

Tsuna blinked thoughtlessly as Hibari walked away. Slowly, as he disappeared from sight, she put her hand to her forehead. Her face turned red, and her chest tightened. Even though they were no longer there, she could feel Hibari's lips still pressing against her forehead. He had kissed her.


	8. Agreeing and Disagreeing

_Agreeing and Disagreeing_

For the one hundredth time in the last hour, Tsuna sighed.

"They say a happiness escapes every time you sigh, so you'd better stop sighing if you want to have any happiness left, Dame-Tsuna," said Reborn. Tsuna glared at her tutor.

"I don't know how," she said in a growl. "But this is your fault somehow."

"What's my fault?" asked Reborn. Tsuna decided not to answer that question and got a kick to the head for her silence. "Best to tell your loving guardian everything."

Tsuna scoffed. Loving guardian her foot and leg. Unfortunately, she had no one else to go to. Both her best friends were male, and she knew that Gokudera would blow something up if he ever found out what happened between her and Hibari. And she couldn't calm her storm guardian down because she couldn't explain the situation when she didn't understand it herself.

"Hibari kissed me," she whispered, the words sounding worse out loud than in her head.

"He moves fast," said Reborn approvingly. "So tell me about your first kiss."

"It wasn't that kind of kiss," said Tsuna, the heat in her cheeks worsening. She needed to get some more girl friends. Talking about this with her father/mentor figure was mortifying, and that Reborn was amusing himself with her suffering didn't help. "He kissed me on my forehead."

"If he had done more, I would have shot him in the head," said Reborn.

"You were watching?"

"It's the duty of every parent to keep a close eye on their child."

"I'm sure what you do can be classified as stalking," mumbled Tsuna.

"If you like him, you should go out with him," said Reborn. Tsuna sighed.

"I can't," she said in almost a whine. "I don't want him to involve him in the mafia."

"He's already involved," said the hitman. He didn't even wait for Tsuna's glare to turn on hims before continuing. "He has fallen for the Vongola's tenth generation boss. He won't leave you alone now, so he's involved with the mafia whether you like it or not. It would be best to just invite him into your _familigia_ and be done with it."

"Why do you want him in the familigia anyway?" asked Tsuna angrily. She knew that the infant hitman had planned this, probably from the start. And she hated how helpless she was to stop his plans. And she felt worse that she was always glad that he won in the end.

"Because he'll be able to protect you when I can no longer do so," said Reborn. "He has the potential to be your strongest guardian one day."

"I never said he'd be my Cloud guardian," said Tsuna defiantly, though the words warmed her. Her tutor rarely spoke so openly about his affection for Tsuna. He probably did it to manipulate her further into the situation, but she couldn't help but feel touched. "I…I just like him more than I thought now…"

"Then go out on a date with him," said Reborn. "And don't worry, your dear guardian will be keeping an eye on you two."

"That doesn't make me feel better at all!"

-break-

When the cute brunette had entered the Disciplinary Committee room, Kusakabe had had to remind himself that enthusiastically greeting her would scare the girl off. He guided her into a couch in Kyoya's office that was rarely used by anyone but the head prefect. She sat ramrod straight and kept glancing at the door. She looked adorable and strangely perfect for his little bro as she fidgeted with her skirt. If Kyoya didn't come in soon, Kusakabe might risk the head prefect's displeasure and start a conversation with the cute girl. Fortunately for Kusakabe's ribs, Kyoya entered just as Kuskabe opened his mouth to ask the girl what she was doing here.

"Hibari," said the brunette girl. "I-I…u-um, hello…"

"…Sawada Tsunayoshi."

The two stared at each other. Kusakabe had never experienced this silence from Kyoya. The head prefect's normal silences were filled with a refusal to speak. Kyoya demanded to be understood. But this silence held no such demands. Kusakabe had never been able to label one of Kyoya's silences as awkward before.

"I-I wanted to…to…to m-meet with you after school today," said the brunette, blushing bright red.

"...Namimori café," said Kyoya.

"Namimori café?" asked the girl, the blush replaced by confusion.

"We will meet at Namimori café."

"O-oh, a-alright," said the girl, as she stood from the little worn sofa. "I'll see you then."

"Where are you going?" demanded Kyoya.

"To go back to class," she said as she headed for the door. He grabbed her hand.

"Do not talk to those herbivores," he growled.

"Who? My classmates?" asked the girl. Kyoya continued to glare. She lifted her eyebrows in surprise. "Gokudera and Yamamoto?"

Somehow, the girl understood the "yes" in Kyoya's silence.

"No," she said. The girl no longer resembled the timid brunette that had entered the room. "They're my friends, and I won't abandon them. Not for anyone."

The silence that followed that statement contained more than Kusakabe could understand, from both sides. Neither wanted to back down, and if the light brunette was not a girl, Kusakabe would expect the silence to end in blows. This girl, the one who stood firmly across from the Hibari Kyoya, this was the girl that Kusakabe could see his little brother falling in love with. So that is one mystery down and about a dozen more formed.

"…don't let them touch you," said Kyoya at last. Kusakabe wondered why he wasn't more surprised that the taciturn teen had broken the silence first, but that formerly timid girl had something about her that made refusing to yield a bad idea.

"Yamamoto doesn't mean anything by it," said the girl, this Sawada Tsunayoshi. "It's the way he shows affection. Gokudera would not touch me. He feels too unworthy for that. Every time I so much as try to hug him, he freaks out, and we've been together for years now."

"Sasagawa Ryohei," said Kyoya.

"Unless it's for a spar, I doubt Nii-san would be interested."

"6PM. Don't be late," said Kyoya, giving that girl his back. She nodded, though she knew he couldn't see her.

"See you then, Kyoya." When that last word slipped off the girl's tongue, the timid brunette returned with a bright blush. She opened and closed her mouth and looked back and forth from the door to Kyoya. Was Kyoya…no, the light from the window must be playing tricks. The Hibari Kyoya did not blush.

"I will bite you to death if you are late," said Kyoya as he headed for the window. He opened it and exited the room, ignoring the fact that this room was on the third floor as usual. The younger teen's gait appeared rushed, but Kusakabe was probably reading too much into his little brother's movements. The girl gave a sigh and turned to leave before catching sight of Kusakabe. The fading blush on her cheeks kicked into a new gear. Kusakabe smiled and said what he had wanted to say from the beginning.

"Take good care of Kyoya."


End file.
